The Department of Safety and Homeland Security said 21 people were killed in 17 traffic crashes over the Independence Day holiday weekend in 2012, at a rate of about one death every six hours. Half of the crashes involved alcohol and nearly 40 percent of those killed weren't wearing seat belts.

AAA motor club estimates about 724,000 people will travel at least 50 miles from home over the holiday period — 84 percent of them by car.

8 Comments on this post:

"Half of the crashes involved alcohol and nearly 40 percent of those killed weren't wearing seat belts."
That means 60% killed were wearing a seat belt. Deductive logic concludes seat belt use increase the odds of dying in a car wreck.

By:courier37027 on 7/2/13 at 3:40

Before many of you whine to your local listserve board, this is a holiday for explosives. Take your pet to a kennel or a place where fireworks will not be shot or displayed. Some of you pet owners think your precious little four legged critter has special rights to quiet and tranquility.

And for you holiday zeroes out there who mix alcohol and fireworks, try celebrating sober for once, will ya? I grow tired of stories about losing fingers because your common sense was left at home.

By:Badbob on 7/3/13 at 3:25

What the stats don't say is that of the one-half that involve alcohol, some of those were caused by people not drinking, who ran into someone who had. The stats are biased in a big sort of way and as Kevin points out, not really worth very much.

By:TITAN1 on 7/3/13 at 9:52

Don't drink and drive = common sense.
What courier said, try shooting fireworks without alcohol. Once again = common sense.
As for pets, our Lab will be indoors. There is that common sense again.

By:Rocket99 on 7/3/13 at 10:40

What if we shoot alcohol with fireworks? Try to hit the bottles and kegs with the bottle rockets. If you hit it, you drink it. Sounds like a redneck game if I ever heard one.

By:ancienthighway on 7/3/13 at 3:33

If you hit it the bottle, good luck licking it off the ground before it soaks in.

Let me make sure I understand. Badbob suggests that because some people who were killed in a crash with a drunk driver weren't drunk, that drunk driving should be permitted? Should we make sober driving illegal then?

Most likely Badbob was repeatedly stopped for drunk driving, lost his language, and has to be driven around by his wife or mommy or who ever else he can mooch a ride from.

While every one handles alcohol differently, I know that before my sobriety, I was a danger to myself and everyone around me, whether I was in a car or not. I wish I would have had a wake up call before I did. Hopefully some people stopped this weekend will get their wake up calls.

By:dargent7 on 7/3/13 at 4:00

Weds. to Sunday?....5 days? Too much.

By:amabelmathews89 on 7/23/13 at 1:01

The Department of Safety and Homeland Security said 21 people were killed in 17 traffic crashes over the Independence Day holiday weekend in 2012, at a rate of about one death every six hours. Half of the crashes involved alcohol and nearly 40 percent of those killed weren't wearing seat belts.
http://www.enormousseo.com/